Effective Marketing is a Key to long Term Success for Your Small Business

A Home Business Article Contributed by Elizabeth Fox-Wise

Marketing is the Life Blood of Your Small Business

Many small business owners think that marketing is synonymous with sales. To equate the two would be the same as the old proverbial statement about giving a man a fish or teaching a man to fish. One is focused on the eating in the here and now and the other is focused on the long term ability to provide food. Sales is like giving a man a fish, it is focused on the here and now. The next sale. Marketing, on the other hand, is focused on the long term.

Marketing is intended to build a good image for your small business and strive towards long term success. The major goal of marketing is to help your small business build a sustainable, long term, competitive advantage so the business will prosper.

Studies show that a business with a good image built from their long term effective marketing, has a much higher and longer success rate. Proctor and Gamble is often sited as an example of a business with an image built through marketing. In 1837 when they were founded, there were 18 companies in their city of Cincinnati marketing soap products; yet they were the only business to survive. Because they executed a marketing campaign that gave their company, which was marketing Ivory Soap as 99 44/100 percent pure, an image of quality.

Building Your Small Business Image Through Your Marketing Can Be Accomplished with Small Things.

Your small business does not have to spend thousands of dollars on a marketing campaign with television commercials and other large expensive methods. Most small business does not have a marketing budget large enough to allow that. However, little marketing techniques focused on your niche market can be just as effective.

In fact, it is recommended that you start with the simple things that make an impression on your customers and build your business image. Start by calling your business. Evaluate how your customers are being greeted. Is phone answered by a machine or a live person? If answered by a machine can customer get to a live person? Once they get to someone, is that person helpful and polite? Evaluate your business from your customer's point of view and change anything that doesn't work.

There are other things to evaluate as well. Look at your hours of operation. Be sure that your business is open when your customers want you to be. Is customer follow through done?

Advertising is Also an Important Part of Marketing Your Small Business

Besides using your marketing to mold your small business image, your marketing also must handle the promotion and advertising of your business. Obviously for your small business to be successful people must know that you exist and what you sell. Therefore, marketing needs to focus on getting your business name out as much as possible.

Some effective places to advertise your small business include the Internet, Trade Publications, local newspapers, and magazines depending on who your niche market is.

There are also some low and no cost marketing solutions for your small business such as sending greeting cards to customers and prospects and making telephone calls.